While perceived value is required for a successful bargain book, another primary element these days is quality. Today's knowledgeable consumer is choosier. Less often will just any cheap remainder or promotional book do, and this is particularly so in illustrated and children's books. Elsewhere in the market, religion books are flexing more muscle, and non-book items are pointing toward new sales paths.

Illustrated Books: High Standards Are Key

"Everybody wants art books," says Tamara Stock, sales and fulfillment director at Daedalus Books. "But the market has changed dramatically in the last three years because Taschen and Könemann do such high-quality, inexpensive books. Those have eliminated mark-ups for anything but top-rate art or style remainders. Once you could sell a second-rate monograph on Goya. Now you can't, which increases competition for top art books. Besides, art book houses do a lot of white saleing and rarely remainder anything."

Amy Rhodes, Abrams v-p and director of sales and marketing, steers clear of the term "bargain books." "When we publish an Abrams book as an Abradale edition, we always try to retain the same specs," she says. "Sometimes, if it's still in inventory, we'll just rejacket it as an Abradale book." The subjects Abradale pursues remain relatively constant. "We have a couple of art titles on a list," Rhodes says, "books that have had terrific success in trade editions, but that may be in their waning years. There's also a pop culture title on each list. In the spring, we'll have a book of Scavullo photos, and in January, we're doing Walt Disney's Fantasia about the same time the Fantasia sequel is released."

Lynn Bond, president and publisher of Random House Value Publishing, reports, "Art books seem to have come back in a big way, especially books on classical painters, like ours on Monet and Michelangelo that sell for $9.99. There's been a bit of stabilization in the gardening area, but we're seeing steady growth in our two travel series, Pictorial Souvenirs and Pictorial Tours."

Smithmark is in the process of change, says editorial director Nancy Starr. "We had a brief flirtation with beautiful trade books, but we're returning to the roots of bargain books, and omnibus books, like our $14.98 hardcover containing three by Elaine St. James, will be a major part of our program." Smithmark will continue with illustrated volumes as well. "Sports is a big category," Starr comments. "One of our biggest fall successes is Wrestling Madness by Matt Hunter, a ringside look at wrestling superstars that sells for $9.98 and has 80,000 in print. We're also successful with illustrated companion books to current bestsellers. The Life of a Geisha by Eleanor Underwood is artistically designed and sells for $9.98." As for the future, Starr reveals, "We're leaving the remainder business entirely to focus on original and packaged promotional books. You can still do a book on dogs or planes if you take a different angle. Last spring we did 100 Planes 100 Years and 100 Motorcycles 100 Years. Next will be 100 Trains 100 Years and 100 Cars 100 Years."

"We try for different categories with our Courage Books," reports Justin L ber, director of publicity at Running Press. "Our fall list includes In the Kitchen with the Chippendales by Stacy Rae Rubalcaba at $14.98, The Collectible G.I. J by Derryl DePriest at $19.98 and Christmas in America by Antonia Felix, which is $12.98. Most promotional books don't get much attention, but we publicize all of ours."

Albert Haug, president of Book Club of America dealing in remainders and hurts, stresses again the need for high standards in illustrated books, among which gardening and sports continue strong for him. "We have to know what our customers are looking for, and what they're looking for is quality. A 99¢ book can be an impulse item, but when you get to $14.99, quality matters." "People looking for illustrated books are usually more sophisticated," observes Susan Bain, v-p, director of national sales and marketing at Kudzu Book Traders. "They're title- and subject-oriented."

Children's Books: Demand Is Greater Than Supply

"There's always a demand for children's books," says Bonnie Kaufman, whose remainder company is I-Deal Books, "but they're harder to come by. That's actually one of our hottest categories, but there aren't as many returns, so they're more difficult to find. Board books for younger readers do well, and so do arts-and-crafts kits."

"We do book-plus packages," says Courage's Justin L ber. "This fall we'll have a Night Before Christmas set [$17.98], which is illustrated by Christian Birmingham and comes with a set of nesting Santa dolls."

"We can go for a long time without being offered any high-quality children's books," says Daedalus's Tamara Stock. "Clarion and Harcourt release remainders only every 18 months or so. Among the most desirable children's books are now pop-ups and things with gimmicks, but they can command a price that's out of the range of children's titles. Most children's books are about $5.98. Pop-ups can go as high as $9.98."

This fact provides opportunities for a promotional children's book company like Playmore. National sales manager John Barbour asserts, "Our business is very good this year." The company's most successful imprint is the Great Illustrated Classics, which includes hardcovers of tales like Black Beauty and Gulliver's Travels retailing in the $3 range. "We used to do more coloring and activity books," says Barbour, "but because so many people sell them, we needed something different. So now we're doing more board and pop-up books. The mini-books sell for $1, the full-size ones for $1.99 to $2.99."

Random House Value Publishing also sells traditional stories such as Heidi and Anne of Green Gables in $5.99 editions with faux leather trim. "We've been cautious in our children's program because you can't compete with licensed children's product," says R-H's Lynn Bond. Smithmark's contribution to the category this fall are omnibus editions of the first three Nancy Drew mysteries and the first three Hardy Boys mysteries, each in a jacketed $9.98 hardcover, and a new hardcover by painter Donna Green, My Little Artist, at $10.98.

Guaranteeing that Book Club of America will have an ongoing inventory of children's books -- and all other categories as well -- Albert Haug cites his new, exclusive agreement with Simon & Schuster to handle all its hurts and remainders. "Children's books are one of our top categories," he says. "Our growth rate of 55%, and this year is phenomenal. High quality is the key."

Kudzu's Susan Bain notes, "A juvenile remainder seems to retain its value, so pricing isn't usually as deeply discounted as other product." Ed Grossman, president of Marketing Resources, says, "We're a full-line close-out wholesaler, but we started in juveniles in 1980. Today we're finding success with teacher-related materials, which I think reflects the current emphasis on home schooling and charter schools. Some customers tell us that this area is growing 20%-25% a year."

Religion Books: Growth Opportunities Abound

Religion is spreading throughout the land. "Religion books are a bigger part of our business than we ever expected," says Marketing Resource's Ed Grossman.

Larry May, whose L.B. May and Associates wholesales remainders, says, "We've developed something of a niche in the Christian business, which is relatively new. Religion publishers are about 10 years behind, because they've always given remainders to prison ministries or sent them overseas. Since they've gotten into outlets like Sam's and Costco, however, they're getting more returns." May notes that general trade stores are slowly becoming more receptive to religion bargain books in part because of the surge of interest in spiritual books over the last decade. "For trade stores," he says, "it's important to have name-driven books by people like Max Lucado and Charles Swindoll, but we also do well selling evangelical books back into Christian bookstores."

While some Christian bookstores frown on bargain books, 43 others have formed a chain called the Christian Outlet Group. Headed by Fred Plutchak, owner of Christian Book Center in Fair Oaks, Calif., each independent store operates a separate outlet -- or a sizable department within the store -- handling only bargain books. "We incorporated about 1993 and operate as a kind of association," says Plutchak. "We buy and sell to our group, which I'd like to expand. We'd also sell to general trade bookstores interested in having a table of Christian books."

Thomas Nelson and its imprints have an entire system in place, says Barry Baird, executive director of remainder sales. "There are six of us selling remainder product full-time to wholesalers, chains and stores. We have four people selling just to mom-and-pop Christian stores and general stores. We've also developed new outlets, like the Ross dress shops." Baird reports that his remaindering department has its own dedicated booth at BEA and CBA. "I think we're also the only inspirational publisher to have a fully dedicated remainder showroom, which people visit from all over the country. We want to partner with booksellers to sell the category, not just to liquidate books."

Although it's a secular arena, CIROBE proves valuable to religion publishers. "It gives us new exposure to academic and university-related shops," says Sam Eerdmans, v-p, sales and marketing, Wm. B. Eerdmans. "Bargain book and remainder people come to us more than ever before," remarks Sharon Heggeland, national accounts representative at Tyndale House. "We've gotten a lot more general inquiries, which we attribute at least in part to CIROBE." Don Cooper, president of Servant Publications, concurs that opportunities are up. "The reception is very good," he says, "because increasingly bookstores are realizing that a bargain table is a good thing to have." Jerry Wit, Moody Press sales manager, general trade, says that religion bargain books are "a category that booksellers can sell like any other, especially books on practical Christian living topics such as marriage, family, finance. A religion book d sn't lose its value as severely as a general book."

And don't forget promotional religion books. Random House Value Publishing introduced Testament Books this year. "They've gone very well," says Lynn Bond. "We started fairly low key and will have around 20 titles by the fall, books like Test Your Bible IQ and The Christian Book of Why. We're not cutting into the Christian market. We want heightened attention in traditional markets and are starting an aggressive marketing program next spring."

"We launched our division in January 1998," says Chuck Cook, v-p, division manager of Family Christian Press, which is affiliated with Family Christian Bookstores, a chain of 324 stores across the country. "We concentrate on remainders and develop our own private brand product by going back and doing classics like In His Steps by Charles Sheldon, which we sell at $1.97 in mass market. In the past year and a half, we've done 85 projects, which we sell only in our own chain. We stress not so much bargain, as value."

Non-Book Product: Good Packaging Adds Sales

"We've been selling books on tape for five years," says Albert Haug of Book Club of America. "The problem is the supply. What sells best, of course, are brand names, both authors and readers."

"We currently have more than 100 titles in our catalogue," says Carmen LaRosa, v-p and general manager of Media Books Audio Publishing. LaRosa's company purchases reproduction rights from original books-on-tape producers to create $7.98 bargain tapes. "I think the category of bargain audio tapes is just now being recognized," he says. "If we're coming out with a title by Dick Francis, for example, we use aggressive pricing to position it as an impulse item. Our mission statement is to have high-profile authors and good packaging. We also have an extremely attractive corrugated display, which itself won an award at a point-of-purchase show at the Javits Center in New York City."

Andrew Halpern, a partner in Resource Media Distribution, explains his firm's operation as "similar in function to a book wholesaler, but we deal in CDs, cassettes, videotapes and CD-ROMs, and we serve the book trade from Barnes & Noble and Texas Bookman to mom-and-pop stores, as well as places like Circuit City and music stores." Halpern reports that bookseller response is encouraging: "It's a sideline that's becoming a department for some stores." He notes that the high-end children's CD-ROMs he offers can retail from $3.99 to $9.99. "We're finding more and more product to sell," he adds. "We have an inventory of over one million pieces of videotape. Booksellers are usually most interested in self-help tapes and how-tos."

"We do quite well at book shows," states George Howard, sales representative for Surplus Countrywide, the cassette, CD and videotape wholesaler. "I wrote $30,000 at the BEA show in L.A. and $28,000 at CIROBE last year." What sells best to booksellers, says Howard, are classical CDs and children's videotapes, such as Dr. Seuss titles acquired from Random House and Golden Book prepacks like Beauty and the Beast and The Silver Pony, which can retail for $7.99. "We also have seven million CDs in stock," he says. "We sell a lot of those to college campus stores. Overall, in the last year and a half, we've doubled our business with bookstores, in part because we're marketing more directly to them."

"We've been experimenting with CDs over the past few years," says Tamara Stock of Daedalus. "Mostly we handle classical, with some jazz and some world music. As far as other non-book products go, the chains have gotten into blank books, journals and note cards, so we leave them out of the calculation when we're thinking of buying those. It's quality that counts. If we can get 5000 high-quality note cards or address books, we'll buy them. If they're 5000 okay cards, we won't."

"We've been selling teethers, pacifiers, photo albums and other baby products to the mass market retailers," says Bonnie Kaufman of I-Deal Books. "We're already in there selling books, so we can expand our product." Smithmark is expanding its product line interestingly with the Beanie Baby Collector's Journal and Display Case, a $12.98 package that includes a hardcover for cataloging a collection and a corrugated cardboard case that unfolds into a vertical pyramid with 27 labeled compartments.

Marketing Resources also finds creative avenues. "We are in the closeout business," says Ed Grossman, "so we sell stationery, pens and pencils to booksellers, and at back-to-school time, we sell portfolios, spiral-bound notebooks, staplers. Some bookstores even want the office product we offer, such as desk accessories, small file systems and corner caddies in both plastic and metal."

In the bargain world, opportunities are virtually everywhere.